Reflection on Acts 5

Do you ever wonder what a truly Spirit-filled church would look like? In case that question might scare you, let me assure you that I am not talking about people laughing hysterically, barking like dogs or rolling on the ground. I mean, how would a church filled with Christ’s Spirit live & act in our world? We are not left in the dark. Luke provides 2 descriptions in just 4 chapters.

The first description is provided after the Spirit came upon the disciples at Pentecost (Acts 2:42-47). The second description is given after the apostles pray for boldness to preach the word and the whole community is filled anew with the Holy Spirit (4:31). So we see that each description of the church community is followed by a filling of the Holy Spirit. Luke wants to show us what a truly Spirit filled church community looks like.

In Acts 2 and 4, we witness the priority of these spirit-filled believers. The early church shows us what it looks like to set our mind on things that are above. They are devoted to the Word, to prayer, to celebrating communion, and to fellowship.  And consistent with the book of Luke, we see that this Spirit-filled community takes a radical view on money and possessions.

This is what should challenge us with our North American lifestyles. The Kingdom of this world is all about our comforts, our wants & our things. The Kingdom of Jesus is diametrically opposed to this. Why? Because in the Kingdom of God we are filled with the Holy Spirit and compelled to live out the 2 greatest commandments: Love God first (not money) and love others as yourself. If we are to truly love others as much as we love ourselves, we will take care of people in their need.

We do well to avoid extreme views that have historically been defended from this passage. Luke is not describing Christian communism (we see this because the Christians still owned their own fields and had their own possessions). This is also not about private ownership - for nothing that we own is truly our own. It is about STEWARDSHIP. We are stewarding God’s money and so it is paramount to hold our possession and money with open hands and ask “King Jesus, this is at your disposal. How would you want me to use this?”

This is not easy. We need the Spirit to transform our heart so that we view money and possessions differently. How we spend our money SHOWS what we love and also SHAPES what we love. He desires us to love Him first and love others well.

Barnabas is an example of one filled with the Spirit and transformed by the love of Christ to give sacrificially. He sells a field and puts it at the Apostle’s feet to distribute to those in need. This is a Christ exalting act of radical giving empowered by God. We can be sure that there is a great reward for Barnabas in Heaven (Matt 6:20, Matt 19:21, Luke 12:33). 

Ananais and Saphira provide an opposite example. Instead of being led by the Spirit, they are led by Satan. Instead of love for God and neighbor, they desire praise for themselves. Instead of honesty and transparency there is dishonesty and deceit.

Whereas we see Satan working to tear apart the church through persecution in the beginning of chapter 4, we see another strategy of the enemy to destroy Jesus’ bride: opposition from within. 

We just read about the beautiful church community. What could be worse than trying to destroy it by the very people that fill the pews? This is still a problem for us today. Problems from within can be more painful than outward persecution because the very people that tear apart the community of faith are supposed to be our brothers and sisters in the Lord. 

At first glance, you might not see the utter darkness of Ananias and Saphira’s deed. You might think, “They sold a field and gave a good portion of money to the church! Why the harsh judgment?!” 

While it is true that they gave money to the apostles, these ‘disciples’ lied about the amount, desiring the church community to see their generous giving and praise them for their sacrifice. They wanted to deceive people into thinking that they were more spiritual, more generous, and more sacrificial than they actually were! They were not completely concerned with the poor among them. They were concerned with their own reputation, and so they were willing to lie and deceive to earn this status among the believers. 

Peter recognized this for what it was: a scheme led by none other than Satan himself. Our enemy knows that falsehood will ruin fellowship. And so, he is not only active outside the church to bring about persecution, but inside the church to create division and problems. 

This act of deceit and lying was judged by God quite severely. Ananias & Saphira wanted to see if they could get away with such deception. God wanted the church to know HE SEES IT. He knows what is in our hearts. Even if we do not see immediate judgement like this in our context, we can be sure that God is passionate about the purity and honesty of His bride. He cares for the unity of the Body of Christ and despises hypocrisy. 

So how do these stories impact our lives today? The first is to challenge us to view our money and possessions as God’s money and possessions and use them in a way that will steer our affections away from things of this earth and towards God and others. If we walk by the Spirit, we can be sure He will lead us into generosity.

The second is to remind us that honesty and transparency is so important in the body of Christ. If our desire is for others to view  us as more spiritual, more loving and more giving than we truly are, we are deceiving others and falling into the same trap Satan set for Ananias and Saphira. We need to be reminded that it is not about us and our reputation. We would do well to humble ourselves and confess our sins to one another to guard against such hypocrisy (see James 5:16). 

Finally, let us be reminded of the grace of our Lord. We fail, but He is faithful. He lived a perfect life in our place. He died in our place for our sins and God raised Him from the grave. He is alive. His blood washes over all our sins past, present, and future and He desires to fill us with the Holy Spirit to walk in His mission with honesty and integrity: to love God, to love others and to make disciples.